American Gangster Film Analysis

The film Boyz n the Hood, is about a group of friend who grew up in the same neighbour hood, but were raised in different way because of the beliefs of their parents. Tre lived with his father who thought him to do the right thing and what it means to be a man, while Ricky and Doughboy who are brothers a raised by their mother in a home where there is little to no structure. Ricky and Doughboy grew up in a home where their mother openly favor one son over the other due to the fact that one boy showed more potential then the other. After watching Boyz N the Hood” there is a clear understand that in any family there are internal and external factors that can effect any person. In this movie you learn that the people you are closest with or call your family may not be blood related to you. After spending a significant amount of time together Tre, Doughboy and Ricky became a family outside of their own families. Internal factors that had an effect on the lives of the young boys in the movie include the parenting style, communication skills and assignment of roles. External factors that were seen in the film include family structures, systemic issues of classism and racism, circumstances and environmental circumstances.

The critically acclaimed film, Goodfellas, is a gangster crime drama that features an incredible amount of talent. Household names such as: Robert De Niro (Jimmy Conway), Joe Pesci (Tommy DeVito), Paul Sorvino (Paul Cicero), and promising stars like Ray Liotta (Henry Hill) and Lorraine Bracco (Karen Hill), attracted numerous Oscar and Golden Globe nominations. That type of cast power, linked with the signature talent of Martin Scorsese as a director, made for cinematic gold. Unquestionably, the actors and actresses did an excellent job augmenting the verisimilitude of this film and compelling audiences to empathize with their characters. But the cinematography in this film plays just as large a role in having audiences feel what the characters are feeling at a specific moment. Through the use of freeze frames, we learn of significant moments that shape Henry into the man that he is. By means of first-person narration we are able to know exactly what is going through a particular character’s mind. Finally, wonderful editing made great use of point of view and multiple jump cuts, which added to the sensation that we are undergoing the same experiences as the characters on screen. I will go into further detail and specify scenes that convey these elements as the essay progresses. Altogether, Martin Scorsese’s Goodfellas effectively depicts paramount scenes and allows the audience to empathize with the characters by virtue of stylistic editing and cinematography.

I recently watched the Netflix movie, Dope, a coming-of-age movie that doubles as a parody and a dedication to the 1990s-vintage ghetto generation. Malcolm and his friends Jib and Diggy are nerdy high school seniors who bond over anything ‘90s related, play music together in their punk band, and have grown up together in “The Bottoms,” in Inglewood, California. Malcolm was trying to escape a gang one day when he had an encounter with a neighborhood drug dealer named Dom. Dom ended up invited him to his birthday party, and with hesitation, Malcolm and his friends decide to go. After an eventful night, Malcolm and his friends later discover that Dom had stashed a handgun and a large amount of drugs in his backpack to hide it from the police who raided the party. The rest of the movie plays out into a war over the drugs that Malcolm accidentally possessed. Malcolm ends up selling the drugs and promises Dom’s prominent supplier, who was also coincidentally Malcolm’s college interviewer, the profits made from the drugs. Malcolm makes this deal with him only as long as he helps Malcolm achieve his goal of getting into Harvard. Malcolm ends up setting up the supplier with the police while still getting into Harvard and finally being able to get out of the hood. In terms of black masculinity, Malcolm counteracts the hyper-aggressive stereotypes that some have in their head about young African-American men. In the movie Dope, numerous aspects of intersectionality are represented in

Ridley Scott’s American Gangster (2007) conveys the true life story of Frank Lucas. The main character Frank Lucas is a dominant heroin dealer that lives in Harlem, New York. After the death of his boss Bumpy Johnson, a lucrative drug dealer, Frank realizes that he must continue Bumpy’s legacy. Frank devises a plan that he will build his own empire and create his own version of the American Dream. He believed and understood the drug world sufficient enough to thoroughly change the drug game dramatically and single handedly.

Boyz N the Hood, displays the challenging upbringing of adolescents who have to live with harsh conditions around not only their home but also their surrounding town. The film compares the differences between the lifestyles of Tre Styles and his friends’, Darren and Ricky Baker. Darren and Ricky are half-brothers who are nothing alike. Singleton demonstrates the importance of male leadership in a home in the ghetto of Los Angeles by comparing the difference between the lifestyles of Tre and his friends. While many adolescents in the hood have close friendships, some form close relationships by assembling gangs and create a world of violence due to alcohol abuse, which together ultimately breeds discrimination.

Goodfellas directed by Martin Scorsese in 1990. This film is an account told by a young man named Henry Hill (Ray Liotta), who is an Irish-Italian teen who aspires to become part of the Mafia at a young age. He later marries a Jewish girl named Karen (Lorraine Bracco) who soon found her life to become absorbed with the Mafia, almost more so than Henry. This movie shadows Henry’s life in the Mafia for about 30 years. It tells of his ideas and infatuations with life consisting of unlimited power and extreme “highs” down to the lows, disloyalty, and deterioration that comes with life in the Mafia. Three other main characters of this film are the “wiseguys”. Paul “Paulie” Cicero (Paul Sovino), who is known as the boss of the neighborhood and becomes a “father” to Henry. Even though his ranking in the Mafia lands him the title of a “bad Guy” he does have a compassionate side. Jimmy “the Gent” Conway (Robert De Niro) is more of your lower level mobster, who just does what Paulie tells him to do. Since he is Irish he can’t be a big wig in the mafia. Tommy DeVito (Joe Pesci) is another one of Paulie’s trusted mobsters and actual member of the family. He is a loose cannon ready to explode at any time, who has grown up in the mob family.

Famous director Martin Scorsese made history by directing two of the most prolific mob movies of all time, The Goodfellas (1990) and The Departed (2006). Both were nominated for Academy Awards; however, The Goodfellas lost the award, making The Departed Scorsese’s first Oscar winning movie. Although it lost the Academy Award, The Goodfellas was the most Oscar-worthy of the two movies based on it’s cinematic elements, like editing, camera movement, and effects, and its dramatic elements, such as acting, costumes and makeup, and lighting. The Goodfellas presents a much more technically advanced film, complete with clever and innovative details that make the movie stand out against its successor.

“American Gangster” is based on the true story of Frank Lucas’ life. It is the story of how he cut out the middleman in the heroin business and the story of how Ritchie Roberts caught him. Throughout the film we see the parallel between a cop and a criminal as we inch forward to see their lives finally meet.

The Gangster We Are All Looking For by Lê Thi Diem Thúy and The Book of Salt by Monique Truong both introduce characters that leave Vietnam, only to be haunted by their separation from the nation and the memories it holds. In The Gangster We Are All Looking For, the narrator and her father are forced by an American war to flee their home and migrate to San Diego, California. Alternatively, the Book of Salt features a Vietnamese man, Binh, who tells his story of leaving French-colonial Vietnam and immigrating to France. In these texts, the present lives of the protagonists are saturated with remnants of their pasts. A vastly reoccurring motif in both texts, water, in all of its forms and effects, is not only used to show how the past continues

In the book Hamlet by Shakespeare, irony is used numerous times in order to give the reader insight on what is going on. As stated in the Merriam-Webster dictionary, irony is an action that is understood by the audience but not by the characters in the play. If this strategy were not included in this drama, it would take away the whole purpose. This play would consist of no suspense and would be extremely boring to the reader because the characters would know as much as the readers know. This allows for incite to what can happen in the future or what has happened in the past. The irony in this play ultimately revolves around Hamlet and his plan to achieve revenge with Claudius. From the play that Hamlet organizes

The film Gangs of New York is set in the mid-19th century, when violence had risen with power during the time of massive political corruption and yearning cultural assimilation. The film portrays the sociological issues that took place in this period. In 1846, a mass of Irish immigrants migrated into the city, which many natives disfavored. Narration of the multiple issues that filled the city came from the main protagonist, Amsterdam. From this, the viewer could comprehend that the issues the immigrants faced contains valid historical context behind the film like discrimination and social marginalization. Moreover, the film not only portrays a historically accurate picture about the immigrants during this century, but can be easily compared

Frank Lucas in the 1960's was the upcoming gangster in Harlem. He was "Bumpy Johnson" right-hand man at first though. Frank would drive Bumpy around, get his lunch, and every now and then kill some people when needed (according to Bumpy). The movie starts off with a powerful scene with a man sitting in a chair having gasoline poured all over him as Bumpy and Frank watch. Once all the gasoline is used, Frank lights up his cigar and throws the lighter on the victim. As he begins to burn in great PAIN frank begins to shoot him repeatedly. It’s important to know that during this time Bumpy was appreciated throughout Harlem from all the citizens. As Bumpy begins to tell Frank a very important lesson in taking pride of selling an authentic product he suddenly has a heart attack and dies. Now as for Frank he has two choices, either become the next big gangster of Harlem or become someone else’s “driver”.

The audience is aware that Hamlet is acting this way because of his uncle’s betrayal to his father, but no one else understands. Shakespeare’s use of dramatic irony allows readers to have a better understanding of the effect of the betrayal on

Dramatic irony is in speeches or a situation of drama and is understood by the audience but not grasped by the characters in the play. For instance when Judge Danforth and Elizabeth Proctor were talking; Danforth: "We are given to understand that at one time you dismissed your servant, Abigail Williams...Why did you dismiss Abigail Williams?" Elizabeth:"She dissatisfied me; And my husband" (Act IV). This quotes shows dramatic irony when Elizabeth lies to protect Johns reputation, but what she does not know is that John himself has already confessed to adultery. Thus both of their reputations are damaged, John’s for adultery and Elizabeths for

The Gangster film is a genre that tells a story that can be universally appreciated. Formed in America there is a grand appeal to their methods and composition. Gangster film has a certain formula, where any country can use its intrinsic convections, but it’s also adaptable enough to conform with any particular country’s context without losing its inherent meaning. In French cinema following the Second World War, for example, there was a visible shift that had French films shadow Hollywood’s approach. Director Jean-Pierre Melville was one of the pioneers of the French crime movie. In 1956 his appreciation of the American gangster and film noir led way to “Bob le Flambeur”. A film very American in its characteristics, but still withholds a French aura about it.